Connie Cordero: The Point of Doing Well

“Life shows up,” says Connie Cordero. What she means is: You might think you have it all figured out, only to have the wind knocked out of you again. She had been working at Homeboy Industries—taking good care of herself and her seven children, determined to build a future after four years in prison—when her brother was murdered.

“It would have been so easy for me to throw everything away then. I wondered what was the point of me doing well if these things could still happen to me,” she says. “I had all this hurt and anger, but I had to let people support me. I held onto everything I learned at Homeboy—kinship, hope, faith. That’s what got me through.”

Today Connie works as a Navigator, helping newer trainees discover their own ways of coping with trauma and moving forward. She recalls a difficult conversation in which she told a trainee she needed to seek treatment for substance abuse.

“Because I’ve been there, I could tell her truthfully that it was going to work for her. I see her today [healthy and sober], and I think, ‘I helped make that connection.’ That’s my success story right there.”

Connie’s face also lights up when she talks about her children. The oldest two are in college, and the younger ones are thriving. But she’s quick to question the “I changed for my children” narrative that many parents recite.

“You should also do it for yourself because you deserve it,” she says. “Why am I doing this? I’m doing this because this is who I am.”